Dietary fats

                   

Cholesterol

A type of fat.

Essential structural component of cells walls
synthesized by all animal & human cells

80% of blood cholesterol is synthesized by liver and 20% comes from dietary fats

It means even we totally avoid fats and oils in our diet, body will continue to synthesize it.
This is because it is needed to be in the cell walls, coverings of nerves.

It is a precursor for:

• steroid hormones, 
• vitamin D  
• bile acids

It circulates in blood as
LDL (bad cholesterol)
HDL (good cholesterol)




Does not provide energy (zero calories)


Food sources

Red meat
Egg yolk
butter

Triglycerides

Type of fat (lipid) 

Body converts excess of calories from food into triglycerides and stores in fat (adipose) cells.

It is deposited around the waist as abdominal fat and in the buttock

These stored fats are again converted into calories when body needs it

Triglycerides are fatty acids

Fatty acids
Saturated (SF)
Monounsaturated (MUFA)
Polyunsaturated (PUFA)
PUFA 6
PUFA 3
Both these oils are not synthesized in body and have to be supplied from food(essential oils)

PUFA 6 : PUFA 3 ratio should be less than 4. If more it is a risk for diabetes and heart disease.

Energy dense;
1G = 10 calories
           (Twice as carbs & proteins)

Food source


Excess calories from animal fats,nuts, refined sugar converted into TG

Fats & cholesterol contents of various foods

                                                   Fats (Triglyceride)                         Cholesterol
                                     Gm/100gm                         mg/100g

Butter                               80                                250
Ghee                               100                               300
Milk (cow)                         4                                  14
Milk (buffalo)                     8                                  16
Milk (skimmed)                 0.1                                2
Egg (whole)                     11                                 400
Chicken (with skin)          18                                 100
Chicken (without skin)      4                                   60
Cheese                            25                                 100
Paneer                             15                                 20
Mutton                              13                                 65
pork                                  35                                 90
Beef                                  6                                   70
Organ meat
Brain                                 6                                   2000
Liver                                  9                                   300
Kidney                               2                                   370
Heart                                 5                                   150

Prawns                              2                                   150
Fish (lean)                         1.5                                 45
Fish (fatty)                          6                                   45     

Pure ghee has 300 mg of cholesterol per 100gm
Do not get scared by this figure. 300 mg are present in 100g
which means 20 teaspoons.   
   
Do we eat 20 spoons of ghee? we may eat at the most 2 spoons which contains only 30 mg of cholesterol.
It is good to have one or two teaspoons of ghee every day without feeling guilty.